The Director-General engages with the Scotland Committee of the UK National Commission

UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova engaged in a very lively discussion with the members of the Scotland Committee of the United Kingdom National Commission for UNESCO during her visit to Edinburgh on 29 June 2011.

The exchanges covered a range of issues that matter for Scotland and for UNESCO, from World Heritage and intangible cultural heritage to education for sustainable development, including the role of Scotland's Creative Cities, Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Director-General presented also her vision for UNESCO in responding to global challenges, underlining the importance of the reform underway. She thanked the Scotland Committee "for its dynamism, its ideas, and its vision." "UNESCO needs such engagement more than ever," she said.

Also on 29 June, Irina Bokova was honoured to receive a Doctor Honoris Causa degree from the University of Edinburgh. After a ceremony venerable with tradition in McEwan Hall and before some 500 graduating students and their families, she spoke on the importance of empathy and responsibility for the century ahead.